Sanitary napkins traditionally have incorporated a central and absorbent having a permeable body-facing side and a liquid resistant, undergarment-facing side. Such napkins are typically applied to the inside crotch area of an undergarment with one or more pressure-sensitive adhesive strips.
More recently, sanitary napkins having side panels or flaps which laterally extend a short distance from the central absorbent and are intended to be folded about the outer crotch portion of the undergarment. See Mattingly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,047, issued Aug. 26, 1986, and Glaug, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,178, issued Oct. 20, 1987, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The side-protecting flaps of Glaug are adhered to a release strip during packaging. Such release strips, however, present a significant waste disposable problem as well as contribute to a more expensive sanitary napkin.
Mattingly does not employ a release strip, but rather, adheres the flaps together using the pressure-sensitive adhesive element designed for permitting the flaps to be attached to one another once they have wrapped around the crotch of an undergarment. Adhering flaps to one another for "packaging" purposes, however, without appropriate safeguards, can present a risk of damaging the impervious backing materials of the flaps when a user attempts to disengage them prior to use.
Accordingly, a need exists for absorbent products that contain side panels or side-protecting flaps which can be secured to the product for selective use and convenient packaging. There is also a need for minimizing disposal problems associated with release paper which normally covers flap adhesive elements.